Join CCMISC for a book talk, signing and reception with game design professor, Celia Pearce.

In Playframes (MIT Press), Pearce takes a deep dive into the question, “How do we know we’re playing?” She builds a comprehensive theory of the specific mechanisms that metacommunicate the message “this is play.”

Pearce teases out distinctions between ritual and play activities, including social practices in which they merge or are indistinguishable, as well as incidents of frame breach or misalignment, where participants’ perception of “what is going on” diverges.

Building on recent research, the book culminates with an in-depth analysis of the gaming roots of the January 6 Capitol insurrection and argues that playframe breach and deliberate misalignment were the major contributing factors.

Following a brief book talk and Q&A, attendees can purchase a copy of the book and have it signed by the author.

Please note: Since the third floor of Snell Library is not open to the public, non-Northeastern attendees will need to share their full name and email address in advance of the event.